My goodness, am I a fool or what?? Way back when, in a land not so very far away, I wrote this gem: “I’ve always admired John McCain. I may not always agree with his positions on issues, but the man is not your prototypical slash-and-burn Republican.” Uh…yeah; I had that one pegged, didn’t I? There may have been a time when John McCain seemed like not-your-average-self-interested-Republican, but that seems like a lifetime ago, eh? Now McCain, an eminently worthy former DUMB@$$ AWARD wiener, is running for President…apparently on the “be all things to all people” platform.
It seems that McCain’s position on various issues depends on the audience he’s speaking to. If he’s speechifying to an audience of Evangelical Social Conservatives, he’s all about prosecuting the war in Iraq and striking down Roe v. Wade. If he’s talking to a more moderate group, he’ll tailor his message and his views to whatever he thinks is necessary to garner their support. Of course, politicians have tailored their message to fit their audience since Adam ran for Mayor in the Garden of Eden. It’s what politicians do. No matter how hard I rack my brain, though, I cannot remember a Presidential candidate so willing to flip-flop on positions so openly and unapologetically.
What’s so wrong with sucking up to everybody? Well, for one, leaders don’t “suck up”. Leaders try to convince people of the correctness of their vision. Leaders persuade. They display moral courage, they live their beliefs, and they set an example by their words and deeds. As far as I can see, the only belief John McCain holds dear is the conviction that he’ll do or say whatever it takes to get himself elected President in 2008. Leadership? Moral courage? You’ll have better luck finding those things on eBay than in John McCain.
You’d think that a man who has suffered so egregiously while serving his country would possess a greater degree of integrity and a more highly-tuned moral compass. Yeah, right….